Month: October 2014

There are varying opinions among followers of Jesus regarding what to do about Hallowe’en. Some say we should steer clear of it because God’s people shouldn’t be celebrating the devil’s holiday. Others say we should engage, either because it’s just dressing up for fun or because it’s a way to witness to the community.

I have some sympathy with each side, I must admit.

Hallowe’en is a contraction of All Hallows’ Eve, the day marked in the liturgical calendar ahead of All Hallows’ Day, or All Saints’ Day, which is November 1. Its origins, my wife reminds me, are Christian: poor children would go door-to-door in search of food. Prayers would be said over homes. The needy would be cared for. God’s work would be done. Only later did a more sinister element come into the celebration of All Hallows’ Eve.

The devilish twist that has come to Hallowe’en is yet another mark of the depravity of humanity. The idea that anyone would throw eggs at the homes of those who do not give out candy is not part of the original plan. Rolling large pumpkins down hills and having them splat into whatever got in their way is not what the poor children of small English towns were seeking to have happen. Putting poison in apples or razor blades in candies is not what was intended for marking All Hallows’ Eve.

Can Hallowe’en be redeemed? For a while, one would see ‘alternative’ gatherings, where kids were asked to dress up as their favourite Bible character and come to the church. But it just wasn’t the same for anybody. There are still alternative activities that are offered, and they can be fun.

Taking your kids around to neighbours’ homes can be a way to build bridges with your neighbours, perhaps leading to relationships that could help you share God’s love. Opening your home to kids who come seeking goodies can be valuable, too. Carve a cross into your pumpkin (to ‘let your light shine’!). Don’t wear a scary costume. Engage the kids in real conversation. On top of that, opening your door to trick-or-treaters can be a way to get Scripture into their, and their parents’, hands and hearts. I especially recommend Scripture selections – little snippets from the Bible on pertinent topics – from the Canadian Bible Society. They aren’t doctrinal in nature – just offering pure Scripture in an easy-to-read translation that will give the kids who come to your door something to think about…something to chew on as they chew on the goodies you’ve given them!

But if you’re going to mark Hallowe’en as a form of Christian witness, make sure the candy you put in beside the Scripture selection is really good stuff. After all, the Bible tells us to “Taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34.8a, NIV)!

By the way, more important than Hallowe’en, today is Reformation Day. It was on this day in 1517 that Augustinian monk Martin Luther made public 95 ideas for reforming the church from the inside. In today’s terms, it “went viral”, and began the Protestant Reformation. Happy Reformation Day! May the Lord bless you in whatever way you celebrate.

There are better titles I could have chosen for this message, and you’ll learn why I didn’t choose one of them as you listen. In this new series, we’re taking a journey through the first letter of John, near the end of the New Testament. Written by the same John who penned the Gospel, the Apostle, the first letter of John is primarily a story about God’s love – and right thinking about the person of Jesus Christ.

For a long time, we assumed these sorts of things only happened in other places: Tel Aviv. Belfast. New York.

Now we know: Canada is not immune. The terrorist attacks in Ottawa on Wednesday morning have shaken our nation in ways not previously experienced. We are vulnerable. Those who would make Canadians “pay” for our desire to see freedom and democracy for all the world’s peoples are among us.

In other words, we now live as much of the world lives.

We cannot, however, live in fear, for that is what the terrorists want. They undertake their activities in an attempt to terrorize people into succumbing to the wishes of those doing the terrorizing.

Many people in the world live in fear because of terrorism, and it is in those places where the terrorists have the upper hand.

But not all those living under terrorism live in fear. Consider the Christians in Mosul, Iraq. It is they who live with the most visible sign of terrorism these days. It is they who have the Arabic letter nun painted on their homes by ISIS insurgents who are intent on eradicating the Christian “infidels” from the land they believe is rightfully Islamic territory.

If some armed group were threatening to remove you from your home, what would you do? If your answer is “give in”, you’re not like the Iraqi Christians. Not only are they not giving in, there are reports that more people are coming forward to be baptized into the name of the Triune God of grace – even in the midst of overt persecution.

“Fear” is not in the vocabulary of these believers. Neither should it be in ours.

The days of Christendom, even in good old safe Canada, are gone. To live as an authentic follower of Jesus today is not mainstream. It is, as it always was in New Testament times, counter-cultural. But we serve the God who enabled the prophet Elijah single-handedly to put the prophets of a false god in their place. We serve the God who enabled little David to slay Goliath the giant. We serve the God who brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ.

If that sounds a little bit triumphalistic, so be it. The apostle Paul told the Roman Christians, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8.31, NIV). It is this belief that we serve the one true God that has encouraged Christians for over two thousand years.

The threat of terrorism – religious, political, or otherwise – is real for us. But we should not fear.

Take a few moments and slowly read – more than once, if you can – Psalm 46 (NLT). Allow it to soak through you and fill you with faith in the God who will protect you, who will protect all of his faithful, in the face of whatever may come before us. (When you see the word “interlude”, that’s right in the text; pause at those points and let the words sink in.) Believe what you read, and let that be an encouragement to you…and through you, to others.

A lot of people, it seems, are worried about the Ebola Virus. I wouldn’t call it “mass hysteria” yet, but we are getting close to the need for a “remain calm” announcement!

There is much in the world that can cause harm; it has always been so. The realities of contemporary media mean we hear about it a lot sooner and more often than we used to. But in the midst of that which can harm, there is also that which can bless.

Worrying, of course, does nothing to help us or the situation about which we’re concerned; as Jesus told us, we can’t add to our lives by worrying (Matthew 6.27).

Whatever our concerns, know that we can give them to God and be assured of his care. The answer we receive, whatever it may be, may not be exactly what we ask for, but it can be part of God’s greater plan, which is too vast for us to know.

The “Altar Ego” series has been fun to prepare and preach, and people seem to have been finding it encouraging. I am grateful for the outlines, and for the writing of Craig Groeschel, who wrote a book called Altar Ego (which you can find here). In the series, we’ve been laying on the altar of God’s grace our feelings of inadequacy, our need for control, and our right to be offended. In this message, we look at laying on the altar of God’s grace our longing for approval. Based on Galatians 1.1-10 and 1 Thessalonians 2.1-6, you can listen to the message here:

Most Canadian households will celebrate Thanksgiving this weekend in one fashion or another, whether it’s by inviting the extended family over to the house for a turkey dinner, or going north to close up the cottage before the frost gets at the water pipes. And while I would often take this opportunity to encourage you to be thankful – and I do encourage you to be thankful! – I wish instead to encourage you to take a break.

Stop.

Rest.

Not just after the potato overdose kicks in from Thanksgiving dinner, but now.

Stop.

Rest.

The time from the day after Labour Day until Thanksgiving tends to be one of the more hectic times of year, with all sorts of activities restarting after their summer hiatus. Many of you will already be in need of a break, and there’s still the Thanksgiving celebration to attend to.

Stop.

Rest.

Now.

Simply marvel in God’s goodness to you, and accept his invitation to come, and rest in him. If you’d like some accompaniment for that rest, even for two minutes, feel free to listen to this setting of a text from the Song of Solomon by the English-Canadian composer, Healey Willan: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdEIYnQsSZQ

“Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away; for now the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth; the time of singing has come” (Song of Solomon 2.10b-12a, NRSV). True, the winter is not past, it is on the doorstep! But the beauty of autumn remains, and the invitation of the Lord to us, like the invitation of the love to the beloved, remains.

Many people carry a burden of unforgiveness. In this message, we’re encouraged to lay on the altar of God’s grace our right to be offended. It’s based on Proverbs 19.11 and Romans 12.1-5. In the middle of the message, I showed this video. You can listen to the message here: